Themes: Opposites Attract, Family Vacations, Vacation Romances
Main Cast: Frankie Avalon, Annette Funicello, Connie Stevens, Lori Loughlin, Tommy Hinkley
Release Year: 1987
Country: US
Run Time: 92 minutes
MPAA Rating: PG
Plot
Frankie Avalon and Annette Funicello not only starred in the delightfully "retro" Back to the Beach, but also served as executive producers. Appropriately set 25 years after such drive-in faves as Beach Blanket Bingo, the film finds Frankie and Annette as husband and wife, living far from the surf 'n' sand in Ohio. Heading to California to visit their daughter Lori Loughlin, Frankie and Annette are appalled to learn that she has been keeping time with punker Tommy Hinkley. In time-honored fashion, our hero and heroine set about to make the beach safe for funlovers everywhere by driving out Hinkley's unsavory pals. Along the way, Frankie nearly bollixes up his marriage by dallying with Connie Stevens-one of several pop-culture icons appearing in Back to the Beach, including Don Adams, Bob Denver, Jerry Mathers, Tony Dow, Dick Dale & the Del-Tones , Stevie Ray Vaughan, and even Pee-wee Herman! Back to the Beach is fun for a while, but its six-person writing team can't figure out a logical way to wind it all up. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Review
More of an oddball homage to the bygone era of the beach film than a straight-up parody, Back to the Beach still has its fair share of goofy gags aimed at the genre and its stars. But the film is mostly just a series of out-of-nowhere B-list celebrity cameos and out-of-nowhere song-and-dance numbers, which actually isn't the worst thing in the world. It's a light movie that's just short enough and just fun enough to be enjoyable. The songs are at the very least interesting, with a pre-scandal Pee-Wee Herman covering the Trashmen's "Surfin' Bird" and a you-have-to-see-it-to-believe-it Annette Funicello and Fishbone duet, and there are a few genuine chuckles along with a few forced ones mixed in with a fair share of groaners. Still, while Back to the Beach is definitely on its way to being a minor cult-classic, it's anything but a must-see movie. ~ Matthew Tobey, All Movie Guide
Demian Slade - Bobby; Paul Reubens - Pee-Wee Herman; John Calvin - Troy; Joe Holland - Zed; David Bowe - Mountain; Don Adams - Harbor Master; Bob Denver - Bartender (uncredited); Alan Hale, Jr. - Bartender's Buddy (uncredited); Tony Dow - Judge #1 (uncredited); Jerry Mathers - Judge #2; Dick Dale; Stevie Ray Vaughan - Himself; Alan Barry - Salesman; Barbara Billingsley - Announcer; Todd Bryant - Webby; Edward Byrnes - Valet; Linda Carol - Bridgette; John Paul Jones - Punk; Thomas David Parker - Salesman; O.J. Simpson - Uncredited; Rick Avery - Surfers & Punks; Steve Cooper - Surfers & Punks; Fishbone; A.J. Nay - Surfers & Punks; Rodney Bingenheimer - Himself; Geof Brewer - Surfers & Punks; Dwayne McGee - Surfers & Punks; Noon Orsatti - Surfers & Punks; Hartley Silver - Fl????man; Laura Urstein - Robin; Eddie Vail - Surf Dude; Denise Chamian; Jane Jenkins; Janet Hirshenson; Pat Banta - Surfers & Punks
Credit
Denise Chamian - Casting, Lori Eastside - Choreography, Marlene Stewart - Costume Designer, Lyndall Hobbs - Director, David Finfer - Editor, Frankie Avalon - Executive Producer, Annette Funicello - Executive Producer, Steve Dorff - Composer (Music Score), Hallie D'Amore - Makeup, Jamie Anderson - Camera Operator, Paul Pollard - Camera Operator, Michael Helmy - Production Designer, Bruce Surtees - Cinematographer, Marty Hornstein - Production Manager, Frankie Avalon - Producer, Annette Funicello - Producer, Frank Mancuso, Jr. - Producer, Donald J. Remacle - Set Designer, Bruce Kirschbaum - Screen Story, James Komack - Screenwriter, Peter Krikes - Screenwriter, Steve Meerson - Screenwriter, Bill L. Norton - Screenwriter, Christopher Thompson - Screenwriter, Bob Boykin - Musical Performer
The film is an open parody of the beach party movies made popular in the 1960s, especially those in which Avalon and Funicello had appeared. The plot is merely the means of connecting the various sight gags, homages and in-jokes. All character names are taken from those earlier films.
The film's soundtrack included covers of several well-known beach tunes, along with new songs by such artists as Aimee Mann and Private Domain.
Frankie Avalon and Annette Funicello are husband and wife living in Ohio — far from the surf and sand of their earlier lives together. Heading to California to visit their daughter Sandi (Lori Loughlin), Frankie and Annette are appalled to learn that she has been making time with surfer Michael (Tommy Hinkley). In time-honored fashion, our hero and heroine set about to make the beach safe for fun-lovers everywhere by driving out Michael's unsavory friends.
